Decorative patches for clothing have been known for many years. They were originally used for insignia for uniforms such as worn by military, police, or organization such as Boy or Girl Scouts. Such patches were often treated with varying stiffening agents, and were usually fully embroidered, adding to the stiffness. The edges were usually reinforced with fairly heavy stitching to force the patches to retain their shape.
Originally, and in most cases to this day, these patches were sewn on to the uniform garments. As the use of the patches became more widespread, however, it became common to attach the patches adhesively, which made decorative patches much more accessible. Haigh, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,657,060 and 3,816,211, presents a patch and method of manufacture, respectively, which allows the patch to be attached through the use of a common household iron. This "iron-on patch" was introduced in the 1970's and has become the most common method of adhesive attachment of patches. Many Boy- and Girl-Scout patches are now supplied routinely in iron-on form.
In addition to the insignia type patch, the iron-on technology has been applied to reinforcing patches, originally intended for the knees of denim jeans. The knee patch branched out to elbows, seats, etc, and became something of a fashion item, especially for children's clothing.
In recent years patches, especially decorative patches, have become very popular among children and teens. In addition to the military insignia type patches, cartoon characters, sayings, and simple shapes are common. These patches are easily ironed on to the denim jeans or jackets or heavier shirts which children wear. However, they pose a problem for the Softer, more flexible clothing such as the fleece sweatsuits which have become popular in recent years.
The stiffness of the patch, which is a desirable attribute for police arm patches or the like which should retain their appearance after many washings, is a detriment when applied to soft sweatshirts. The clothing flexes easily, leaving the patch shelving out uncomfortably. When used as knee patches for sweatpants, the patch impedes bending of the pants and looks odd.
Several attempts have been made at softer patches for the softer clothing in recent years, but these have not been entirely successful. The patches must be made of thin or soft material, but this is difficult to sew on sweatsuits. Most iron-on adhesive is too thick and stiff for the softer fabrics.
If the edges of the patches are solidly bound as the older patches were, they become too stiff. If the edges of the patches are not bound, they fray. Prior art soft patches were sometimes supplied with unbound edges, with instructions to apply decorative craft paint to reduce fraying.